Kit Review

Straight build + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Various angles (1/8)

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Various angles (2/8)

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Various angles (3/8)

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Various angles (4/8)

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Various angles (5/8)

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Various angles (6/8)

Various angles

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - First, here it is alongside the Thunderbolt Cartoon Ver. released back in

First, alongside the Thunderbolt Cartoon Ver. released back in December 2013 (left)
The molded colors have clearly been changed.

Zaku II body

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Comparison with the Cartoon Ver. (left). All the molded colors except gra

Comparison with the Cartoon Ver. (left).
All the molded colors except gray have been changed to darker shades.

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Action pose 1 (1/3)

Action pose 1

Action pose 2

Comparison with the Cartoon Ver. Big Gun (left).

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - The molded colors have been completely overhauled in various areas — it l

The molded colors have been completely overhauled in various areas.
It looks like it's been changed to feel more like a weapon with a heavier, weightier tone.

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. - Together with the HG Full Armor Gundam Thunderbolt Animation Ver. release

Together with the HG Full Armor Gundam Thunderbolt Animation Ver. released at the same time.

This kit is the HG Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver., released after the Gundam Thunderbolt OVA. It's essentially the same kit as the 2013 Cartoon Ver. with only the molded colors changed, so for the basic structural details please refer to the HG Zaku II + Big Gun Set Thunderbolt Ver. Review— for this review, you just need to check out the updated molded color points.

Just like the Full Armor Gundam released alongside it, this kit's official name is simply "Thunderbolt Ver.", which makes it indistinguishable from the 2013 Cartoon Ver. by name alone. Because of this, various shops are selling the 2016 release under the label "Animation Ver." to tell them apart — just something to keep in mind. And unlike the Full Armor Gundam where the changes were pretty minor, the Zaku II and Big Gun have had their molded colors noticeably changed.

On the Zaku II, all the colors except the gray parts have gotten clearly darker, and the Big Gun feels like it's been completely reworked with a whole new molded color combination. The overall result is a heavier, more subdued color scheme, which gives it more of a weapon-like feel compared to the original Cartoon Ver. Of course, color preferences will vary, but I'd guess most people will end up preferring the new Animation Ver. colors.

The Thunderbolt Ver. HG Zaku II and Big Gun are both exceptionally clean, well-made kits — if you like the style, these are ones I'd recommend without hesitation. Thanks to the Thunderbolt Ver.'s signature color separation and the dimensional depth of the parts, you get a straight build quality that beats just about any other HG kit out there. The Big Gun in particular is a uniquely massive weapon you won't find in other kits, so it's a really fresh and satisfying build experience.

Anyway, if you've already built the original Cartoon Ver. Big Gun set, it's a bit hard to recommend — but if you haven't built it yet, this is definitely worth picking up. If you're going to change the molded colors, you've gotta go all-in like this. :-)

HGGT Zaku II + Big Gun Thunderbolt Animation Ver. | 2016.4 | ¥4,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.